This wheat berry mushroom soup recipe is packed full of texture and depth, combining tender but firm wheat berries, with ceps and horn of plenty – in my opinion, two of the best mushrooms to dry and use throughout the year. It is rich, satisfying, and very healthy. Perfect for a weekend lunch or a cold winter dinner.

Dried Mushrooms are the Best for Soups

I made this recipe with a haul of ceps (aka porcini) and horn of plenty (aka black trumpet, or trumpet of the dead) that I found last year and dried. Ceps are great both fresh or dried, but I think Horn of Plenty are one of the rare mushrooms that are actually better after being dehydrated.

Drying Horn of Plenty concentrates their earthy, smokey flavour, and when you rehydrate them, they give off an almost truffle like aroma (hence the nickname “poor-mans truffle”. Fresh ones, when cooked, tend to fall apart very easy, but the dried and rehydrated ones have a much firmer, meatier texture.

Ceps are easy to find, and quite easy to identify, but Horn of Plenty are a different story. They range in colour from grey to dark brown, to black, and are most commonly found among the fallen leaves in deciduous forests – meaning you spend a lot of time crawling the forest floor searching for them. Luckily, when you do find a spot, there are usually hundreds within the vicinity, and they don’t have any lookalikes so identification is straight forward.

Another benefit of using dried mushrooms over fresh is the rehydration liquid. Do not ever throw this away! It is essentially high quality, dark, very intense mushroom stock, and becomes the perfect base for any mushroom based dishes such as soups or risottos.

Ingredients

Wheat Berries
These chewy little grains give the soup its hearty texture and nutty backbone. They hold up really well during long simmering. If you can’t find wheat berries, spelt berries, barley, or even farro make excellent substitutes.

Dried Ceps (Porcini)
Ceps are unmistakable — rich, nutty, almost meaty in flavour. They also create a golden brown soaking liquid that’s pure umami.

Dried Horn of Plenty (Black Trumpets)
These delicate mushrooms bring a unique smoky-earthy flavour and mild truffle aroma, and turn the broth dark and dramatic. If you can’t find any, you could increase the porcini or add dried chanterelles for a lighter variation.

Onion and Carrot
Both provide sweetness and a flavour base for the soup. You could add celeriac or parsnip here too if you like.

Garlic
Just a clove or two is enough. Crush with a little salt to unlock its flavour potential.

Bay Leaf & Thyme
These classic herbs round out the flavour. Thyme complements mushrooms especially well. If you don’t have bay leaves, a little marjoram or a sprig of sage can stand in.

Vegetable Stock (plus mushroom soaking liquid)
The foundation of the soup. Use the best stock you can get — homemade if possible. The mushroom soaking liquid is crucial for boosting depth, but strain it carefully to avoid grit.

White Wine
Adds acidity and helps balance the richness.

Olive Oil or Butter
For softening the vegetables and adding richness. Olive oil keeps it vegan.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Cook the wheat berries
If using whole wheat berries simmer in a pot of salted water for 35–40 minutes, until tender but still pleasantly chewy. Drain and set aside. Tip: soak them overnight to shorten the cooking time by 10 minutes or so..
Rehydrate the mushrooms
Place dried ceps and horn of plenty in a heatproof bowl. Cover with 250 ml hot water and let soak for 20–30 minutes. Strain through a fine sieve or coffee filter, reserving the liquid. Roughly chop the mushrooms.
Tip: don’t skip straining — it prevents gritty, unpleasant surprises in the soup.

Dried porcini and horn of plenty mushrooms soaking in a glass bowl with hot water — The mushrooms at the start of soaking — just covered with hot water to release their flavour.

Soaked porcini and horn of plenty mushrooms in a glass bowl after 20 minutes — The mushrooms at the start of soaking — just covered with hot water to release their flavour.

Prepare the veggies
While you are cooking the wheat berries and soaking the mushrooms, prepare the vegetables. Dice the onions and carrots. You don’t need to go too small, this is a rustic soup. Crush the garlic with a little salt to release its flavour. Strip the thyme from its stem and roughly chop.
Prepare the soup
In a large pot, heat olive oil or butter over medium heat. Add the diced onion and carrot. Cook for 5–7 minutes until softened and lightly golden. Add garlic and thyme and stir for 1 minute.
Add the mushrooms
Stir in the rehydrated mushrooms. Cook for 2–3 minutes to release their aroma and deepen the base flavour.

Onions, carrots, and rehydrated mushrooms cooking in a pot as the soup base — The soup base starts with onions, carrots, and rehydrated mushrooms sautéed together.

Add the wine
Pour in the white wine and stir, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom. Let it bubble until almost evaporated.
Simmer the soup
Add the vegetable stock, the reserved mushroom soaking liquid, and bay leaf. Band ring to a boil, then reduce to a gentle simmer for 15–20 minutes.

Combine with wheat berries
Stir in the cooked wheat berries and simmer for another 5 minutes so the flavours meld together. Remove the bay leaf before serving.
Season and serve
Taste and adjust with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Ladle into warm bowls, sprinkle a little chopped parsley, and serve with crusty bread and butter.

Wheat Berry and Wild Mushroom Soup

This wheat berry mushroom soup recipe combines nutty grains with the deep, earthy flavour of dried ceps and horn of plenty mushrooms. It’s rustic, healthy, and perfect for cosy autumn and winter evenings.

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Prep Time 10

Cook Time 1

Total Time 1 10

Course Autumn, Foraged Ingredients, Savory Dishes

Servings 4

Calories 290 kcal

Ingredients

200 g wheat berries
20 g dried ceps aka porcini
15 g dried horn of plenty aka black trumpets
2 tbsp olive oil or butter
1 medium onion diced
2 medium carrots diced
2 cloves garlic crushed
1 bay leaf
1 sprig fresh thyme striped and roughly chopped
1 L vegetable stock
100 ml dry white wine
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Fresh parsley, chopped, for garnish

Instructions

Simmer wheat berries in salted water for 35–40 minutes, until tender but still chewy. Drain and set aside.
Cover dried ceps and horn of plenty with 500 ml hot water; soak 20–30 minutes. Strain through a fine sieve or coffee filter (reserve liquid) and roughly chop mushrooms.
Heat olive oil or butter in a pot over medium heat. Sauté onion and carrots for 5–7 minutes until softened. Add garlic and thyme and cook for 1 minute.
Stir in the chopped mushrooms; cook for a further 2–3 minutes. Pour in white wine and reduce until nearly evaporated.
Add vegetable stock, reserved mushroom soaking liquid, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, then cover with a lid and reduce to a gentle simmer for 15–20 minutes.
Stir in cooked wheat berries and simmer 5 minutes more so the flavours meld. Remove the bay leaf.
Finish & serve: Season to taste with salt and black pepper. Ladle into bowls and garnish with fresh parsley.

Notes

Strain the mushroom soaking liquid to avoid grit — it’s liquid umami, don’t waste it.
For a vegan finish, use olive oil and if you want it a little creamier, stir through some oat or cashew cream.

Keyword black trumpet recipe, cep mushroom soup, hearty wheat berry soup, porcini soup, rustic mushroom soup, wheat berry mushroom soup, wild mushroom soup